List Price: $39.99
Sale Price: $34.26
Today's Bonus: 14% Off
I purchased this product (Cobra Electronics Walkie-Talkie CXT235 Two-Way Radio) during an Amazon Lightning Deal. Previously I already have a pair of very basic walkie talkies (Motorola FV300 2-Way Radio), but I consider the CXT235 a 'step-up' due to its advertised features, namely:
Longer range of 'Up to 20 miles'
'Privacy Codes'
Rechargeable batteries and charger included
My initial impression of the CXT235 was quite positive. The control buttons are fairly simple to use. The LCD panel is back-lighted and easy to read. The 'Privacy Code' feature seems to work well. However, there are several marketing hypes and deficiencies that I need to point out:
1. Like all walkie talkies, the advertised range of 'Up to 20 miles' is highly inflated. This number is only possible under optimal test conditions (transmitting from one hilltop to another with clear line-of-sight, perfect weather, no RF interference, etc). In an urban environment with obtrusions and interferences, you're lucky to get up to 2 miles in range.
2. The so-called 'Privacy Code' does NOT prevent others from listening in to your conversation. Instead, it prevents you from receiving unwanted transmission from other people. Let's say your group is using channel 11 with privacy code set to 22. You will not hear any transmission on channel 11 unless it is preceded by the correct privacy code. But anybody listening in to channel 11 without using privacy code can hear everything you transmit.
3. The included NiMH rechargeable AAA batteries have very low capacity of just 300mAh. Based on my measured power consumption (see Footnotes), this is barely enough to sustain 1-2 hours of operation if you do a lot of transmission. To extend the runtime, I need to replace those batteries with higher-capacity versions, such as Sanyo eneloop or Tenergy Centura (800mAh).
4. While the walkie talkies are plugged in to the AC recharger, you can turn them on but they are unable to receive any calls. That means you cannot leave them in standby mode while being recharged.
Bottom Line:
Despite the above limitations, I consider the Cobra CXT235 a good value at the Lightning Deal price I paid. An added bonus for me is that this product can be used to communicate with my old Motorola FV300 as long as all walkie talkies are set to the same channel, and privacy code is NOT set on the CXT235.
[Footnotes on Power Consumption]
When first turned on, the unit consumes around 60mA in standby mode.
After 10 seconds of inactivity, it goes into 'Power Saver' mode which reduces the average input current to around 20mA
While receiving calls, the units consumes around 100mA (depending on volume)
While transmitting in low power (channel 8-14), it consumes ~250mA
While transmitting in high power (Channel 1-7, 15-22), it consumes ~300mA
The AC adapter's charging current is around 30mA. That means it takes about 12 hours to recharge the included 300mAh batteries.
[Update on June 30, 2013]
I can use higher-capacity rechargeable batteries in the Cobra walkie-talkies, but the AC adapter does NOT recharge the new batteries. It turns out that there is an extra contact in the battery compartment used for recharging. So it only works when using the included Cobra batteries with exposed metal near negative terminal. See the picture I uploaded to 'Customer Images' section for illustration.
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We use these to talk around our 17 acre farm and while kayaking, hiking, and hunting, Two miles away and hilly we were still able to talk. Much farther than that was not so good. Line of sight with no obstructions would probably be better. We love them and have two sets so the kids can keep in touch too. Upgrade to better batterys for more talk time. We use 800mAh rechargeables.
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